As Pure As A Rose
by Daisy3D
Summary: Katniss Everdeen's life could not have been more perfect; a loving boyfriend, supporting family, good education. But when she becomes pregnant after being accidentally artificially inseminated, Katniss' life blossoms into something much more than she could've ever imagined. *Based on the TV show, Jane the Virgin* (Currently on Hiatus)
1. Part One - Chapter 1

**Disclaimer** : I do not own _Jane The Virgin_ or _The Hunger Games_.

 **Note** : Writing that is italicized _and_ bolded is in the narrator's point of view. The narrator is _not_ Katniss.

 **Also** ; as a future reference, Mrs. Everdeen will be the one whom carries the Seam traits/features, as well as harboring Spanish heritage; and Mr. Everdeen will be the one who has the Merchant looks. This is to help some of the plot move along smoothly.

 **Prologue**

 _ **Our story begins thirteen and a half years ago. When Katniss Everdeen was a mere ten years old.**_

 _ **It's should be noted that at a mere ten years old, Katniss' interests include; Her family, God, and grilled cheese sandwiches.**_

"Look at the rose you have in your hand, Katniss." her grandmother, Sae, tells her. "Look how perfect it is. How _pure_." she says, "Now, sweetheart, crumple it up."

"Ugh, mother, stop." Katniss' mother, Lily Everdeen groans as she paints her nails.

"Mommy, shh!" Katniss scolds.

Katniss' grandmother goes back to her lesson, "Crumple up the rose, Katniss."

Katniss does as she's told and crumples the delicate flower in her one hand.

"Good." Her grandmother says, pleased. "Now try to make it new again."

Katniss looks at her grandmother in confusion before doing as she's told once again, "I can't." Katniss huffs in frustration.

"That's right. It can never go back to the way it was before." Katniss' grandmother says, "That's what happens when you lose your virginity. You can _never_ go back."

Katniss just nods her head, taking in the new information her grandmother has told her.

"Never forget that, Katniss." Sae warns.

 ** _And Katniss never did._**

* * *

 **Chapter One**

 **Thirteen and a Half Years Later** :

Katniss and Gale stand on her front porch, having one of their countless make out sessions. Katniss pulls away, "Don't forget this." She says, handing him his detective badge. "Thanks for stopping by."

Gale gives her one last kiss before heading off to his car. Katniss stares longingly in his way for a moment before re-entering her home.

"Goodness, you can at least turn it down." Katniss says as Sae turns down the volume to their favorite movie starring her celebrity crush, Hunter E. (his last name unknown to the world).

"I was letting you know that it was starting," her grandmother says in defense, "Now eat your piece of grilled cheese, sweetheart."

"Ugh, mom, she doesn't have to watch if she doesn't want to." Katniss' mother groans.

Katniss grabs her plate off the coffee table and sits between her mother and Sae on their sofa. "Oh, of course I'm going to watch it. You guys got me hooked on telenovelas. But you really have to know that they've ruined romance for me." Sae shushes her as the show begins.

 ** _Meanwhile, 8.2 miles away from where Jane lives, but half a world away…_**

Party music blares as Peeta _**(hotel owner, playboy, trapped husband)**_ stares off into the distance.

"Peet?" his wife, Glimmer asks. "Babe, are you alright?"

He turns around and gives his wife a smile, "Yes. Thank you for asking."

"Worrying about the hotel?" she questions, walking closer to him. "Look, if anything goes wrong, your father will help out."

He looks at her questioningly and she lets out a smile, "Oh, stop. Do you know what feels bad about taking money?" She questions, reaching out to fix his tie. "People will have too much."

They laugh and she proceeds to caress his face, "That's better, see? You just need to relax."

* * *

Glimmer **_(man-eater)_** re-applies her lipstick.

"You're starting to seem desperate, Glimmer; I do not blame you." Her mother, Lyme says while playing cards. "Your husband does not love you anymore."

"You're wrong mother." Glimmer replies, brushing off her mother's words.

But her mother continues, "It's alright. Tomorrow will change everything."

"I still haven't decided-"

"Oh, you will." she says in a singsong voice, "You will."

* * *

"Maybe Gale's gonna propose." Katniss' best friend, Johanna says. "My sister says guys get all "cheese-ball" before they propose."

Katniss slams her employee-locker shut and smiles, "No way. We have a timeline. Alright? I haven't even gotten my teacher's degree yet, we just merged our calendar's-"

"You've been dating for two years and you haven't boned. He might want to move up your timeline-"

"Everybody decent?" a man asks as he barges into the lady's locker room.

"Who are you?" Johanna asks, walking up to the crazed man.

He strolls up to her. "Carter Boggs, but everyone calls me Boggs. I work for the management company that just bought the hotel. So you can think of me as your new boss." He says before pulling out an array of straws. "Pick a straw please." He says as he begins to hand one to each of the women.

"Okay, let's see those straws." Boggs says as the women do as they are told and begin to hold up their straws.

Katniss huffs as she sees that hers is half as long as the others'.

"What's your name?" Boggs asks, walking up to her.

"Katniss." she says, anxiously biting the inside of her cheek.

Johanna steps up, "But everyone calls her _Koggs_." She says, mocking the man's nickname. Katniss tries to suppress a laugh.

"Okay, _Koggs_. Congratulations. You get the tail." he says smirking.

* * *

 _I did not sign up for this_ , she thinks as she holds a bottle of champagne, dressed in a mermaid costume near the edge of the pool.

A man walks up to her and hands out his champagne glass, she plasters a smile on her face as she refills his glass.

"I can't believe we have to do this." she says to Gloss, who's blowing bubbles around her after the man leaves.

"Do what?" he asks before continuing to blow more bubbles. Katniss looks at him in disbelief before shaking her head and turning away.

* * *

"I don't know Delly." Peeta says to his older sister.

She rolls her eyes, "Peet, if you're not happy, end it."

Peeta sighs, "It's hard. Glimmer stood by me-"

"I know," she presses, "But that doesn't mean you owe her your whole life. Look, you've changed. I mean, of course you did. If you didn't change, I'd be worried about you. And you know what, it's a good thing because you were so insufferable before."

He feigns anger, "Hey!".

"As your sister, I can say that." she laughs, "I loved you then, I love you now and. . . if you do get a divorce, it doesn't make you our father."

Glimmer stares off into the distance, taking in this information as she secretly listens in behind their side of the sofa, away from their view.

"Thanks Del. Now go home to your wife. Say hi to Allison for me." he responds before standing up and looking around at his new hotel's pool party.

Katniss looks on in disbelief as she sees another waitress hand him an empty champagne glass and point over to her. In a fit of panic, she throws the bottle in the pool as she rolls off of the platform and into the water.

Peeta reaches it and looks confused as she makes a big splash. Gloss gives the empty platform a puzzled look as he stops blowing bubbles, before they see a mermaid tail swim along to the opposite side of the pool.

* * *

"Hey, do you remember a guy named Peeta Mellark when we worked at the yacht club? He was like a member, or-"

"The jerk you had a monster crush on?" Johanna interjects.

Katniss squeezes the water out of her hair as she waddles beside her best friend, "I didn't have a _monster_ crush on him."

"We talking about the same guy here?" Johanna asks, rolling her eyes before deciding to tease her further, "You had a _magical_ kiss."

"Who'd you have a magical kiss with?" another waitress, Clove, asks.

Katniss throws back her head in exasperation, "No one. I was young, it was nothing."

The bartender interrupts their conversation, "Hey, I need someone to run champagne to cabana 4, ASAP."

"I got it!" Katniss says in a desperate attempt to get away before giving Johanna a fake smile and waddling away.

* * *

"I'll hand out glasses." she hears someone say as she refills glasses of champagne.

Turning around to thank them, she sees that it's Peeta and tries to ignore him as best she can.

"You look familiar." he says as he looks her over.

Katniss shakes her head, "Really? Hmm, I'm not sure-"

"No, I really think we've met." Peeta says.

Katniss hums in annoyance, "Yeah, I usually wear clamshells." She says jokingly in a monotone voice, referring to her mermaid inspired brallete.

"Oh, the strip club on Biscayne?"

Katniss' face burns as she glares at him, "Jerk."

Just then, Glimmer begins to tap her champagne glass with a fork, signaling a toast. "Please. A toast. To my husband."

Many awe at her words as they go to share a kiss.

Katniss watches on as people begin to clap around them.

* * *

Delly Alver **_(Peeta's sister, married, doctor)_** , takes off her shoes after entering her home. At the sound of moaning, she begins to walk toward her bedroom. She smiles, thinking she knows what her wife is up to, but gasps at the sight that beholds her once she opens their bedroom door.

"Delly!" her wife, Allison yells.

* * *

After turning on her bedside lamp, Katniss turns on her phone. Clock reading 4:22 AM.

 **Katniss** : _I'm home. In bed._ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Gale** : _Phone sex?_ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Katniss** : _Prim's sleeping in here tonight._ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Gale** : _Soundly?_ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Katniss** : _Ew._ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Katniss** : _So… I called the new hotel owner a jerk tonight._ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Gale** : _WHAT? Why?_ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Katniss** : _Long story._ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Gale** : _Get some sleep. You have to be up in 3 hours._ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Gale** : _You have a 9am doctor's appointment and class at 12._ **(4:23 AM)**

 **Gale** : _Enjoying your calendar by the way._ **(4:24 AM)**

 **Katniss** : _Love you._ **(4:24 AM)**

 **Gale** : _You too._ **(4:24 AM)**

Turning off her phone, she sets it back down on her bedside table before turning off her light.

That morning she wakes up at 7:00 AM.

* * *

Delly wipes her tear-stained face with a tissue, taking deep breaths. After calming herself down, she leaves her office.

"Oh, there you are Dr. Alver. You're running a little behind." a nurse informs her. "Remember, you're covering for Dr. Peters. You have an insemination in Room Seven and a pap in Room Eight."

Delly's phone rings, and she goes to check it. Upon seeing her wife Allison's name on the screen, she turns it off and returns it to her pocket. "Um, yeah, insemination and a pap. I got it."

The nurse offers to help her, but Delly just takes the tray with the contents needed for Room Seven as her phone rings again. This time she answers.

"Delly, I messed up. I messed up. I love you. I'm a screwed up person. She means nothing to me, I swear. I don't even care-"

Tears welling up in her eyes, she hangs up her phone before proceeding to enter Room Eight, grabbing the patients' folder on her way in.

"Nice to meet you Miss Everdeen. Are you ready for your insemination?" Delly asks before slamming the door shut behind her.

Katniss' snoring ceases and she wakes up, "Huh? Oh, hi, yes. I'm sorry. I'm a little tired. I'm Katniss. . . I usually see Dr. Peters?"

"Oh, I'll be filling in for her while she's on her. . ." she feels herself start to choke up, "honeymoon. . . Anyway, I'm Dr. Alver."

Seeing the woman start to get upset, Katniss starts to feel uncomfortable. "Are you okay?"

Delly plasters on a fake smile, "Oh, yeah. I'm fine. Um. . . can you. . . can you just scoot down a little, please?"

Katniss does as she's told.

"Um, did you. . . did you bring anyone with you?" Delly asks.

Katniss frowns, "Here? No. . . it's just me."

"Ah, you're doing it alone. Good for you! It's probably. . . easiest that way-" she says before tears begin slipping down her face and she begins crying.

"Dr. Alver, are you _sure_ you're okay?" Katniss asks again.

She sniffles, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm just. . . going through some personal problems."

"I'm sorry. . ." Katniss says awkwardly.

Delly reaches for the syringe containing the important contents, "Hey, we all have 'em, right?"

"Yeah, you know what? Like, if you want me to come back, maybe I can just- Oh, okay! You're starting. . ." Katniss squirms as the doctor does something her regular doctor has never done before at a Pap.

"No, because you'd have to wait a whole month and that's not fair to you." Dr. Alver says regarding Katniss' question of rescheduling. "Okay, all done. You should get your results in two weeks."

Katniss becomes confused, it's never been this quick before. "That's it?"

"That's it." Delly confirms, taking off her gloves and throwing them away. "Good luck and. . . yeah, I'm so sorry for the. . ." she trails off, motioning to her tears.

"No. No, it's okay." Katniss lies. "And I hope that everything turns out okay for you."

Delly sighs, "Yeah." And then she leaves the room.

Katniss sits, perplexed with how her days gone so far.

* * *

Delly enters Room Seven and looks at the patients' file before smiling, "I didn't know that you were coming."

"I had the nurse unfreeze Peeta's sperm." Glimmer smiles as Delly's own begins to fall. "A surprise for him. That's why I didn't tell you. You guys are so close, I didn't want to put you in an awkward position."

Delly just stands there, unmoving. Glimmer rolls her eyes, "Look, if you don't do it, someone else will. And I know from the Internet that you can't refreeze the sample, so. . . unless you want the sperm to die . . ."

 ** _And, suddenly, just like that, Delly realized what she'd done. But alas, it was too late._**

 ** _Katniss' life was now the stuff of telenovelas._**

* * *

 ** _Later, when asked about the so-called "Immaculate Conception of Katniss Everdeen," Delly Alver would say that it was the biggest mistake of her life._**

 **It wasn't.**

Someone knocked the door to Delly's office, "Come in."

And in walked Finch Mellark _**(ex-friend, ex-lover, . . . and now step-mother)**_.

"I didn't know who else to call." Delly explains.

Finch shook her head, "You said it was an emergency?"

"I artificially inseminated the wrong woman, so. . . I need a lawyer." Delly rushes out.

Finch's eyes widen impossibly larger, "I don't practice law anymore, you know that."

"I'm scared." Delly whispers, "I need someone that I can talk to."

Finch rolls her eyes, "Your wife. Your brother-"

"I walked in on Allison last night in bed with her assistant." Delly confesses.

Now Finch is silent, "I'm sorry that happened."

"And it was Peeta's sperm." she continues.

Finch gasps, "What?"

"Glimmer came in for an insemination and I accidentally used his specimen on someone named Katniss Everdeen." she says.

Finch looks around the room, "What did you tell Glimmer?"

Delly looks down, "I didn't. I panicked. I walked into the room and inseminated her with saline."

* * *

"You might be a father. . ." Peeta reads aloud from his fortune cookie, he looks to Glimmer, confused.

"We'll know in two weeks." she says in false excitement. "I used your sample, baby."

Peeta's eyes widen, "You what?!" Glimmer nods and bats her eyelashes. "Without telling me?"

"I wanted it to be romantic." she says, smiling. "I wanted some part of the fact that we had to do it like this to. . . to be romantic."

* * *

"What are the chances this will take?" Finch asks, her deep red hair shimmering in the light.

Delly cowers under her gaze, "20%."

Finch walks closer, "Don't say anything. You're already on probation. You could lose your license."

"But what about Peeta?" Delly asks, "It was his only sample."

Finch shakes her head, "And it's gone. How will telling him change that?"

Delly nods, not knowing what else to do.

* * *

 **Fifteen Days Later**

On the bus ride to the doctor's office, Prim and herself are arguing when Katniss see's two nuns board. She nudges her sister, "Come on, let's get up."

"But you said you're not feeling good!" her sister counters.

Katniss glares at her before nodding her head toward the nuns, "Primrose!" Katniss gets up and goes to stand in the aisle, but ends up falling straight to the ground.

* * *

"Nausea and fainting spell solved," a doctor announces, "You're pregnant."

Katniss and her sister begin to laugh. "I'm sorry, but she's just not pregnant." Katniss nods in agreement, still laughing.

"We tested your urine." the doctor explains.

Katniss shakes her head, "Trust me, the test is wrong."

"False negatives are frequent, false positives are rare."

Prim turns to her in excitement, "Katniss! Did you and Gale. . ."

"No! We didn't." Katniss snaps before turning back to the doctor, "And, it may be rare, but it happened, 'cause I'm a virgin."

The doctor raises his eyebrows, "A virgin? Well. . . maybe we should talk in private."

Prim interjects and says in an oddly calm voice, "My sister said that she is a virgin, so do another damn test."

When the doctor returns, he explains what happens when the specialized stick touches her urine. "Pink means pregnant." And turns around as he raises the now pink stick.

Katniss stares at it in disbelief, "But I've never had sex!"

"Clearly, she's not a virgin." the doctor says.

Katniss glares at him, "Of course I am! That's a mistake."

"It's not a mistake-"

Katniss interjects, "Or it's a hormonal thing."

"Exactly, pregnancy hormones."

Taking out her phone, she begins to dial a number, "Hi. Hello. This is Katniss Everdeen. I need to talk to Dr. Alver because I have a _crazy_ doctor saying that I'm _pregnant_."

* * *

Delly sits in her office chair, looking from Peeta to Glimmer, trying to figure out how to explain the situation to them.

"I'm not pregnant. Just say it." Glimmer says as she holds Peeta's hands.

Delly's mouth forms a straight line as she nods, "No. You're not. . . I'm sorry."

Peeta speaks up immediately, "No, Del. It's not your fault-"

"Well, you see. . . it is, actually." Delly says slowly as both Peeta and Glimmer give her a puzzled look.

"What do you mean?"

Delly sighs, "Two weeks ago, when I walked in on Allison with. . . It doesn't matter. Two weeks ago, um. . . I used your specimen on the wrong person."

"Excuse me?"

"You what?!"

"I inseminated another girl with your sperm. . . mistakenly." Delly says to the awestruck couple just as the door opens to reveal a nurse.

"She's here."

* * *

Katniss and her sister sit in the examination room awaiting Dr. Alver, an awkward tension in the room. She's relieved when the door opens to reveal Delly. "Hey there."

"Dr. Alver, hi. Thank you for seeing me. It's the craziest thing, right?" she rushes out, "These pregnancy tests keep coming back positive and there's got to be a reason, right? Like some hormonal thing. . . or-"

"There _is_ a reason, and the reason the tests came back positive is. . . I accidentally artificially inseminated you two weeks ago." Delly admits.

"What?"

"You what?!"

She puts her hand over her chest, "It was a mistake. I made a mistake. And there was only a 20% chance that it would take, so I-I thought that you would never know, but things turned out differently."

Katniss looks away from the doctor, trying to suppress the tears that begin to form in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Katniss."

"You're sorry?!" Prim screeches. "You should be in jail, lady. You should be locked up."

Delly ignores her, "There's options." she says, taking out a slip of paper as she begins to scribble on it, "This is a prescription for a pill that you could take. Um, of course, you are under no obligation to to consult with the father, but he does know."

"The father?" Katniss repeats, beginning to panic. "The _father_."

Primrose turns to her older sister, "Kat-"

"I have to go. . ." Katniss says, jumping off the examination table.

Her sister tries to grab her hand, but Katniss wrenches it away, "Wait. Katniss."

"No! I have to go."

* * *

Gale hears knocking at his door as he lights a candle, "Just a sec, babe."

"Hey. You're a little bit early." he says after opening the door.

Katniss enters, "Yeah." She hugs him once inside before noticing the laid out dinner table, "Hey, what's all this? I thought we were going out?"

"I made dinner." he says chuckling, "Grilled cheese."

Katniss forces a smile and pats his chest, "That. . . sounds perfect." She turns away as he begins to walk closer into the dining room.

"Okay. . . um, before we eat, I just want to give you a fair warning that I'm about to say some pretty corny stuff." He says, kneeling down.

She turns back around and gasps.

"Okay, ground rules: Not allowed to freak out, 'cause this is a moment we're gonna be telling our kids and grandkids about." he says looking up at her.

"Gale. . . what are you doing?" she asks, slowly walking towards him.

"I'm proposing."

She looks down at him, "But, I mean. . . our _timeline_."

"Who cares about the timeline? Or that, you know, you don't have your teaching degree or that I haven't established my career, that we have debts, or whatever other reasons we have for waiting." he says. "As of today, we've been together for two years."

She lets out a sigh, "But-"

"Wait, wait. Before you say anything," he interjects. "I'm not doing this because I want to have sex with you, okay? I mean, I. . . I _do_ want to have sex with you, 'cause two years is a really, _really_ long time, but that's not why I'm proposing, okay? I'm proposing because I want to spend my life with you. And raise children with you. _And_ have sex with you. So, Katniss Everdeen, will. . . will you-"

"Gale, I'm pregnant."

The engagement ring box falls to the floor.

* * *

 ** _What will serve Gale Hawthorne Jr. well in the illustrious detective career he will go on to have is his ability to focus on the facts. . ._**

"Okay, I need you to tell me again everything that happened, exactly as it happened."

Katniss stares down at the dining table, "Going over how what happened doesn't change the fact that it happened."

"I know, I know. I'm just. . . I'm freaking out a little bit here, babe."

Katniss sighs, "I know. Me too."

 ** _And the fact was. . . this sucked._**

Just then, the doorbell rings.

Gale looks up at the ceiling, "I invited over our families. I was pretty sure you'd say yes."

"Gale, I would have." Katniss groans.

Gale clicks his tongue, "Should, we just pretend like you did? For now?"

Katniss nods and Gale goes to answer the door. She reaches over and begins to take a sip of champagne before spitting it back out in the glass, "Probably shouldn't drink."

* * *

"I need another drink." Peeta declares to his best friend as they sit on chairs by the hotel pool.

Boggs passes him a glass of whiskey, "I can't believe Delly didn't tell you."

"Yeah. . ." Peeta sighs. "She's dead to me."

His best friend looks away and sighs.

"I want it."

Boggs turns back to him, "The kid?"

"An unexpected by-product of cancer. They should put that on the manual, right?" Peeta tosses back, "Being told you can't have kids will lead to you. . . _really_ wanting them. Glimmer will never go for it."

His best friend shakes his head, "Dude. . . this is the same girl who would not leave your side when you were going through chemo. I'm not gonna lie, I thought she'd bolt." He pauses to share a laugh with Peeta. "Look, I'm just saying. Maybe you're. . . _underestimating_ her."

* * *

Katniss' friends swarm her in a big hug. "Thank you for coming."

Gale smiles as his mother gives him a big hug, but is surprised at who he sees once they pull away and she leaves. "What are you doing here, man?"

Rory smiles, "Well, I got to admit – I was hurt, you know? Not to get invited to my own brother's engagement party."

"Oh, well, I'm, uh, sorry I hurt your feelings, Rory." Gale says.

Rory gives him a knowing look, "Uh-uh. Don't treat me like that."

Gale smiles, "Like what?"

"Like I'm a bomb that could go off. Which, uh – heh heh – we know that I could, right?" he laughs, "I mean, everybody here – your _fiancée_ – they think you're such a good guy-"

Gale grabs him and pulls him away, "Do not threaten me, understand me?" Gale looks around. "Do you understand me?"

"Woah, woah, all right? Hey, look, I just came here to, uh, congratulate you on your engagement, that's all." Rory pats him on the back. "So. Why don't you, um, introduce me around. I met Katniss' sister. She's _hot_. What about her pops? Where is he?"

Gale glares at his brother, "He's not a part of her life."

Rory chuckles in delight, "Oh, really? Bet there's a story there."

"There is _not_ a story."

 ** _Okay, here's the story: Katniss has never met her father._**

 ** _In fact, Lily herself hadn't seen Katniss' father since the day she told him she was pregnant with Primrose. . . the same day he told her to get rid of her._**

 ** _Until sixteen months ago when she walked into Carla's Croquetas. . . and saw Katniss' father again._**

 ** _Right there. In broad daylight._**

* * *

"Let's talk, Katniss." her mother says after walking into her bedroom.

Katniss shakes her head, "Mom, I'm not in the mood, all right? I got a big test coming up, I just want to study."

"But, baby, I know how you feel." her mother says, walking closer to her. "I was sixteen when I got pregnant with you, and I was so scared."

Katniss scowls, "You were irresponsible. You got pregnant because you were irresponsible. I don't even have a dad. Not to mention Prim, who's _her_ father? And I've done everything right – my whole life, I've tried to do everything right so that I. . ."

Lily looks away, "So you won't turn out like me."

"I told you I didn't want to talk." Katniss says.

Her mother takes out a bottle of pills and places them on her desk, "I got the prescription. In case. You don't have to have a baby." She then turns and begins to leave the room.

"Would you have had me?" Katniss' question stops her in her place. "Huh? If grandma hadn't made you?"

She turns around once more, "I'm glad I had you."

"That's not what I asked." Katniss counters.

"Yeah, I know." her mother says before leaving her room.

* * *

"Of course I want the baby." Glimmer says to her husband the following morning. "It's your child, so it's my child." Peeta sits on their bed in stunned silence. "You look so surprised."

Peeta furrows his brow as he nods, "I guess I am. A little." Just then his phone starts to ring. "My sister has to stop calling-"

Glimmer goes up to him and swipes the cellphone from his hands, "I'll take care of it." she takes a couple steps back before answering, "Delly, he really doesn't. . . slow down. Who works here?"

* * *

Katniss is nervous as she goes to an abrupt meeting called by her manager. She's nervous as she approaches him, "Ahem."

"Katniss." he says when he spots her. He puts down his drink and walks closer to her.

She folds her hands in front of her to keep them from shaking, "The manager said you wanted to see me?"

He stands taller at her words, "Yeah."

"Look, I'm sorry that I called you a jerk the other night, I was just in this-"

He cuts her off, "I'm the father."

She looks at him blankly, "What?"

He gestures to her stomach, "The baby that your carrying." She lets out a panicked breath, "And I'm sorry about the other day, too."

Katniss begins to breathe heavily and sits down. ". . .I used to work at Golden Harbor Yacht Club. That's where we know each other from."

Peeta's face begins to burn in realization, "Oh, yes." He gasps softly.

"No, I mean, you don't have to act like you remember." she begins, but Peeta cuts her off once again.

"No, no, I do. I remember." He presses. "I—I came in after tennis at the end of summer, and the restaurant was closed. You let me in anyways, and you made me a killer grilled cheese sandwich."

"One-third white cheddar, one-third yellow cheddar, one-third grated American." she says, brushing it off.

He nods, "And then we talked. . ."

* * *

 _They sit at the restaurant table staring into each other's eyes, "Well it depends. Am I being practical or brave?"  
_

 _"Practical." he responds._

 _She smiles, "I'm a teacher."_

 _He looks her deep in her eyes and gives her a smile, "Brave."_

 _"I'm an archer." she says, looking down at the table in embarrassment as she lets out a nervous laugh. She looks back up to him, "I have never said that out loud before!"_

 _He gives her another smile as he watches her, "Be brave." He then leans in, and they share a light, heartwarming kiss._

* * *

"And I never called." Peeta says. "I was kind of a jerk back then."

She presses a fake smile and shrugs her shoulders, "It was a long time ago."

"Still," he says, "I'm sorry."

Katniss smiles slightly before the realization dawns on her again, "I'm not ready to be a mom."

"We'd take it." he says immediately.

She shakes her head, "And then what? I live the rest of my life knowing that my kid is just out there?"

"So. . ." Peeta begins, uncertain, "You're not gonna have it?"

Katniss begins to feel uneasy, "Look, I know that the reasons for me wanting to end the pregnancy are so selfish, that I'm not ready, that this wasn't the plan; that I have worked _so_ hard every second so that my life was different than my mother's. I was an accident and I know my mom loves me. But I also know that in some ways, I derailed her life. I don't want my kid to feel like that. Ever. I want to be ready."

"Yeah." Peeta says nodding his head, "I understand."

* * *

"You didn't drop the cancer card?" Glimmer exclaims into her cellphone as she sits up in bed.

Peeta visibly becomes angered, "The cancer card?"

"Oh, stop. You know what I mean." Glimmer rolls her eyes, "Did you tell her that this was your only chance to have a biological child?"

Peeta shakes his head, "Look. She was upset. I'm not just gonna make her-"

"Oh, give me a break." Glimmer says in disgust as Boggs sits up in bed next to her, intrigued with her conversation on the phone.

 _ **Glimmer was always good at math. According to her precise calculations and her equally precise prenuptial agreement; 5 years = 10 million dollars.**_

"I'll be the bad guy if that's what this is about." she says.

His response is immediate, "No, no, it's not. You know what, don't do anything, don't say anything. I mean it. We'll talk later."

And with that, he hangs up.

* * *

Katniss returns home to find her grandmother in her room holding the bottle of pills. "You've broken my heart."

"Oh, grandma, it's not what you think." she says calmly.

Sae does not let her finish, "I think you have been lying to me for a very long time."

"No, I didn't. I. . . I got accidentally. . . Oh, I don't even know how to say this in Spanish." Katniss stutters.

Her grandmother isn't pleased, "You've had sexual relations. . ."

"No, no, I didn't." Katniss presses. "The doctor made a mistake. I went to the appointment and she. . . accidentally. . . _put_. . . a _sample of a_ _man_ into me."

Sae gives her a puzzled look, "What? A sample of a man?"

"Yes. From his. . ." she stops and points to her private and motions upward.

Her grandmother gives a loud gasp, " _Oh_. And you ended up pregnant?" Katniss nods sadly, "Then this is one of those moments when our faith is tested."

"Grandma, please." Katniss begs, walking towards her.

Sae doesn't stop, "You have to hear this."

"No, but I know how you feel. . ."

Sae continues, "No, you don't know this. When your mother came home at sixteen, and told me she was pregnant, I told her to have an abortion."

"What?!" Katniss gasps.

Her grandmother shakes her head, "And she said no, thank God. But I carry that shame in my heart every day. Because now, you're the most important thing in my life, and this will be the most important part of your life too."

* * *

"Delly, it's Glimmer. I need your help." Glimmer speaks into her phone as her mother, once again, plays cards. "And in exchange, I'll convince your brother not to report you to the medical board."

* * *

Katniss looks outside her door and sees Gale, she happily steps outside. "You're here early."

"Yeah, I just. . . I got called into work." he says looking down at the ground.

She closes the door behind her, "Oh."

"Yeah, so I just wanted to come by and talk to you real quick, in person, you know?" he asks.

She steps in front of him. "Yeah, of course."

"Katniss. . . I _want_ to say that I'll support you no matter what. . ."

Katniss sighs in relief, "Oh-"

"Wait, wait. That's. . . that's what I _want_ to say. But that's not how I _feel_. I want to start a life with you. And I don't want to start it with you having some other guy's kid. And I'm sorry if that makes me a bad person, but that's how I feel." Gale admits.

Katniss draws in a deep breath.

"Please. For us." he says again, "Don't have this baby."

And with that, he walks away without another word.

* * *

 _ **After her teenage husband, Hunter, told her not to have the baby, Lily had a real problem. She knew she wanted the baby, but she also knew her mother did not want it either.**_

 _ **And so, she made her mother promise to keep his identity a secret.**_

* * *

"Your grandma asked me to to never tell you what she said, and I. . . I didn't want you to look at her differently." Lily tells her daughter.

Katniss smiles, "Look at you, being all selfless. But no more secrets. Okay?"

Her mother looks down, "I-I just wanted you to know that you had a choice, because having one – it helps, I think. Whatever you decide."

"I don't know what to do, Mom." Katniss shakes her head. "Gale doesn't want it. And I get why, of. . . of course I get why. But Dr. Alver called and said that the father. . . Peeta, he had cancer. This is his only sample, and he and his wife, they're this great couple, loving and wonderful, and all they want is a child."

* * *

"You want a divorce?!" Glimmer asks her husband.

Peeta nods, "I do."

"I took care of you when you were sick." she exclaims.

He cuts her off, "Which is why I didn't do this a year ago. And I think, if you're being honest, you knew that. I also think it's the reason you used my sample."

Glimmer slaps him.

"And regardless. . . I think we bring out an ugly side in each other. Don't you think?"

He walks away, leaving a stunned Glimmer behind.

* * *

"Nothing, sir." Gale says. "He had some girl come in there, she took off."

His boss use a telescope to peer into Boggs' room, "Boggs' the contact. I'm positive. I.D. the girl."

"Already sent the images down to the station." Gale replies.

* * *

"Lily, some guy's here to see you." the bartender calls out to her.

She slips on her jacket, "If it's Bruce, tell him I'm serious. I don't want to see him-"

"It's not Bruce."

She turns around to see Hunter Everdeen **_(teenage boyfriend-turned-husband, huge movie star. . . Katniss and Prim's father.)_**

"How could you keep my daughters a secret all these years?" he asks.

She shakes her head, "I wrote you sixteen months ago! What took you so long?"

* * *

Gale hears whoops and wolf-whistles as he looks through the photos of Carter Boggs and the mysterious blonde woman. He looks up to see Katniss walking into the office. "Catnip. . . what are you doing here?"

"Trying to be brave. But before I propose. . . you need to know all the facts. And the fact is, I'm having the baby. And we're giving it to the father. He and his wife, they really want it. And they're a really great couple."

* * *

"She's giving us the baby?" Peeta asks Glimmer.

Glimmer nods, "Yes. She just called. She said she wants it to grow up in a happy home, where both parents want it. So, under the circumstances, I thought it best not to mention our _previous_ conversation."

* * *

Katniss forces a smile, "Gale?"

"Yeah." he says. "Okay. I'm okay with that."

Katniss laughs, "Okay." She begins to go down on one knee.

"Oh. . . you can stand." Gale says, helping her up.

She gets up. "Okay, instead of telling you the reasons why I love you, I'm gonna tell you the reasons why I don't." She says. "I don't love you. . . because you're smart and kind. I don't love you because you're hard-working and competitive and way too defensive."

"I am _not_ defensive." his co-workers laugh at this before she continues.

Her eyes begin to well with tears, "I don't love you because you're incredibly sexy. I love you because you're my best friend. And I want to grow old with you. And right now, I'm confused about every single thing in my life. . . except you."

"Wow." Gale whispers.

She reaches out to him, "I love you." With that, he pulls her into a deep kiss.

 ** _And in that moment, in the arms of the man she_ thought _she knew so well, Katniss Everdeen really believed that to be true. And then. . . everything changed._**

* * *

 _I really hope that you guys enjoyed this! Jane The Virgin is my absolute favorite show, and I've watched it a hundred times over. So when my mind melded my favorite book series and tv show, I couldn't help but write it out for your guys' enjoyment. Now for those who watch the show, not everything will be exactly like it, so please don't get upset if some things change._

 _P.S. – I will update once every two weeks, as I found that this chapter took a long time to write. And I can't use up too much of my time when I have school and athletics to worry about as well. Just wanted to let you guys know. (:_

 _With love, Daisy_

 **Written** : _December 6th – 8th, 2015_

 **Posted** : _March 8th, 2016 (my two year anniversary on this site!)_


	2. Part One - Chapter 2

**Disclaimer** : I do not own _Jane The Virgin_ or _The Hunger Games_.

 **Note** : Whatever writing that is italicized _and_ bolded is in the narrator's point of view. The narrator is _not_ Katniss, just a regular old narrator.

 **Chapter Two**

 **Eight Years Earlier**

 ** _Katniss' quinceañera was, without a doubt, the worst party she'd ever been to. But not for lack of effort. In fact, Katniss had planned the day down to a T – the flowers, the entrance, the perfectly choreographed dance with the Superfly Date. – What she didn't plan? That her little sister would take over the mic and perform the number-one hit currently sweeping the nation. . . Milkshake by Missy Elliot._**

 ** _But to her credit, Katniss did not panic._**

 ** _She simply moved on._**

 _"Who wants cake?" **she yelled as the. . .**_ ** _performance_** _**finished.**_

* * *

"No, thank you, grandma. I'm not hungry," Katniss said as her grandmother placed a grilled cheese sandwich in front of her.

Sae, Gale, Lily, and Prim sat on the couch opposite her. "Oh, but you're eating for two now."

 ** _And Katniss was determined to move on now._**

"Yes, I know, but that is not going to be the focus of everything moving forward. I'm gonna. . . I'm gonna get back to my life. In fact, that's the reason why I called this family meeting." she paused to face her fiancé. "Gale, welcome to your first family meeting."

He nodded and smiled brightly, "Happy to be here. Proud to be representing the male point of view."

"Ooh. Oh, see, I wouldn't lead with that, 'cause that's not gonna do well in our meetings."

Gale looked down upon feeling the fiery glares of the three women beside him. "Mostly here to watch and observe. . ."

"So, I just wanted to go over the plan. Alright, the most important thing is that this. . . _event_. . . doesn't derail my life." Katniss continues. "Nothing else has changed. All right? I'm almost at the finish line with college. I got a good job. I'm engaged to a great guy. Sure, there are a few logistical things I'm gonna have to do to make sure it. . . stays in good health, like I set up a sonogram, for instance. But other than that, nothing has changed. Got it?"

Everyone looks around before her grandma steps in, "Can I just say one thing?"

Katniss nods in assent. "Yes. Go ahead."

"You should keep the baby."

Katniss groans. "Grandma!"

"It's a free country! I can say whatever I want to!"

Gale looks around in confusion as the women erupt in an argument in the foreign language, "What did she say?"

"She said that I should keep the baby!" Katniss yells.

Gale whips to face his fiancée's grandmother, "Oh! No, she's not keeping the baby."

Sae begins to attack, "Oh, I think she should—"

"Stop, Grandma. I'm not gonna keep the baby." Katniss interjects. "I-in fact, we're not gonna refer to it as a baby. We're gonna. . . we're gonna call it something else. W-we are going to call it, um. . ."

Her mind then flashes back to her mother singing Milkshake at her quinceañera.

"A milkshake." She states. "And I can't wait to give that milkshake to its rightful owners—good people who _really_ want it."

* * *

"I want a divorce,"

Glimmer watches him pace around, "Well, I don't." She walks up to him and crosses her arms. "And Katniss is not gonna give you that child on your own."

"Yeah. I know." Peeta answers. " Just like I know that you're trying to wait out our prenup to make money off me."

Glimmer stares at him in surprise as he gets even more in her face.

"So, tell me, sweetheart. . . how are we gonna work through that?"

Just then someone knocks on their door, garnering both their attention. Peeta goes to open the door as Glimmer remains silent.

"Hey, man, how you holding up?" Boggs asks Peeta as he enters their apartment.

Peeta strains a smile as he looks over to his wife. "Good. We're good."

* * *

"You know nothing about his wife." Sae tells Katniss after the statement. "She could be a Catalina Creel!"

Katniss stands up out of her chair. "Catalina Creel? Seriously, Grandma?!"

"Who is Catalina Creel?" Gale asks in confusion—he's never gonna get the hang of these family meetings.

Katniss' mother steps in."This super psycho telenovela villain who wore an eyepatch everywhere even though she wasn't really blind."

"Glimmer's not a super psycho." Gale laughs.

Just then, Ms. Everdeen gets a phone call that makes her freeze

"How do you know if you've never even seen her before?" Sae yells at Gale in Spanish.

"Okay, you know what?" Katniss announces. "I am gonna meet with Glimmer."

* * *

"She's just texted me. She'd like to meet," Glimmer announces to the men in her living room. "Sounds lovely."

Peeta looks at her in exasperation as she gives him her trademark smirk.

* * *

"Great. She is excited to set something up. Are you all happy?" Katniss tells them all. "And once I meet with her, I am going to think about this pregnancy as little as possible. I'm gonna get back to my life—"

Katniss' sister stops her right in her tracks, "Uh-uh. No way. After that, you sue the freaking doctor."

 ** _Ah, yes, the freaking Doctor._**

* * *

 _ **The freaking doctor was trying to move forward as well.**_

"Okay," Delly said carefully, reading off the name from the file for the millionth time. "Mrs. Diana T. Gower."

The woman nodded.

"Can you just say your name one more time, and this time would you mind also spelling it slowly? Twice. You can never be too careful."

The woman nods again, happily complying to the woman's weird need to be certain of her name. "Mm-hmm."

* * *

Delly sits typing away at her computer as the door opens to reveal Finch. "The nurse said you were between patients."

"Well, I'm sure the mistake will be dealt with through the appropriate channels, and since I haven't received the. . . _official_ notification that my license is suspended, I figured I should just keep practicing." Delly says before going back to her work just as a notification chimes. "Oh, okay, there's the official notification. My license is suspended."

Finch puts her hand on her hip and looks at Delly with a disapproving look, "You're not drinking are you?"

Delly looks up in surprise. "No. No, I'm not. What I'm doing is that I'm trying to be practical, which is why I called you. I mean, you were a pretty good lawyer before you gave it up to become a trophy wife."

"Take care of yourself." Finch says in annoyance as she begins to reach for the door.

"No. Stop it. I'm sorry, I don't know why I said that. I'm going through a lot, and I'm lashing out. I-I need your help." Delly says, getting up and walking over to her former lover. "I called my insurance company, and there's this thing in my policy. It mentions my brother, and I'm not sure I understand it because of all the legal jargon."

Finch takes the file out of Delly's hand and begins to read.

* * *

"You put your shares of the hotel up as collateral?" Boggs asks his best friend in disbelief.

Peeta sighs. "In case of a lawsuit, yes. Look, no one would insure Delly with her history of addiction. She's my sister. And, I believed her when she said she'd changed."

* * *

Delly looks at Finch with wide eyes. "So if Katniss sues me. . ."

"Your brother's hotel could be on the line."

* * *

"I just don't want to spend the next year in a whole legal battle. I just want to keep moving forward with my life." Katniss explains as her mother's phone begins to ring. "Finish college, obsess about wedding dresses—and who keeps calling you, Mom?"

The phone continues ringing as her mother looks at Katniss.

"Can you ask Peeta if I can sing at the hotel next month?" her mother randomly asks. "I heard Paulina Rubio's producer min get be in town, so. . ."

Katniss, disinterested and tired of her mother asks if it's Bruce. Her mother has a fleeting rendezvous and immediately agrees, to Katniss' dismay.

 _ **It is important to note that Bruce is Lily's married ex-flame.**_

"Stop calling!" Lily yells into her cell phone after begrudgingly answering the call.

 ** _It is also important to note that that was not Bruce calling._**

 ** _In fact, it was Katniss' father, who Lily saw out of the blue sixteen months ago. . ._**

 ** _Seeing her high school boyfriend in a movie was shocking._**

 ** _So Lily did the only sensible thing: She rushed home to Google him._**

 ** _But alas, Katniss did not know any of that. . . yet._**

 ** _And so for a brief moment, as Katniss went to work that morning, it truly felt like nothing had changed._**

"Jane," a voice said as she walked to the locker room to get changed into her work clothes. "Hi, I'm sorry to ambush you like this. I just wanted to talk really quickly about the. . . uh. . . the baby."

 ** _Like I said, the moment was brief._**

Katniss took a deep breath to help compose herself. "Oh. Yes. Hi." He said his own hello before Katniss quickly continued. "I actually texted your wife."

"Yes, I heard—"

Still annoyed, Katniss continued to speak. "Yeah, I was just trying to put a name to the face, and make sure she didn't have an eye patch."

Peeta forced a laugh before her words really sunk in. "What?"

"Nothing. That was a bad joke, sorry." She said looking down at her feet, suddenly self conscious, before quickly forcing herself to face him once again. "I am really excited to meet her. And, you know, see the whole picture and the two-parent-home thing."

"Right," Peeta nodded, avoiding the subject of his wanting a divorce. "So, that's pretty important to you, huh?"

Katniss pressed her lips together and nodded. "Yeah, it's the reason why I feel good about my decision." She said longingly before coming back to her senses. "Sorry, what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?"

 ** _In truth, he decided to come clean to Katniss and tell her his marriage is over._**

"Just some. . . lawsuit stuff, actually."

 _ **But alas, plans change.**_

Katniss looked over at him in disbelief. "You're suing?"

"No, I'm not suing," Peeta laughed nervously. "Just. . . Delly, _Dr. Alver_ , is my sister, so it's—"

Katniss looks over to him with a blank face, "What?"

Peeta hesitates, "The. . . doctor who inseminated you."

"She's your sister?" Katniss says in disbelief. "She's. . . your _sister_?"

Peeta's words fumble as he tries to explain. "Yes. But, I mean, we're not on good terms, obviously—"

"No, but she's like, really your sister?" Katniss asks. "I just. . . _wow_."

Peeta looks down. "And not to make things more awkward. . . but, Katniss, you should really talk to a lawyer. Come up with an amount, present it to us, and that way I can pay you directly, and that way you'll make the most money—"

Katniss looks up at him with a scowl, "What makes you think that I want money?"

"I don't know, I just assumed because. . ." he trails.

"Because I'm a waitress?" she asks.

Peeta sighs, "No, I—I know you're not just a waitress—"

" _Just_ a waitress?"

"That's not what I meant." He says. "Look, you're in college—"

Katniss stops him again. "So if I wasn't in college, I would be, ' _Just a waitress_.'"

"Katniss, I think you're taking this the wrong way."

She looks at him, her feelings masked behind her unreadable expression, "Yeah. Maybe I am. Except this huge thing just happened, and you're telling me that your sister did it, and then you're offering me money." She turns around with a shrug, putting her bag into her locker. "I have to change."

* * *

"Seriously, what did you expect?" Johanna asks. "He's a rich playboy."

Katniss picks up a platter of drinks, "A rich playboy with an entitled attitude, missing a basic sensitivity chip. He was so much nicer in my head."

"That's because he's a good kisser." Johanna smirks as she wipes wine glasses dry. Her colleagues gasped in unison;

"What?!"

"You kissed him?"

"You slut!"

"When?"

Katniss shook her head. "It was five years ago. Not a big deal."

"What did Gorgeous Gale say when you told him?" Johanna asked. "Did he freak out?"

"No," Katniss said sarcastically before looking away. "Because I haven't actually told Gale yet."

As they begin to bombard her with comments, Katniss gives them a look of exasperation.

"He just found out the news about my pregnancy, and I want it to settle." Katniss defends. "I just don't want it to be weird. Or. . . weirder."

"It's definitely weirder."

Katniss looks at her colleagues, "I'm trying to find the right moment."

"Before he meets Peeta?" Johanna asks.

"Obviously," Katniss answers. "Whatever. I'm sure Peeta is a fine guy. We just had one bad interaction. I'm just gonna let it go."

All of her colleagues look at each other with a knowing look.

Katniss begins to lose her composure, "What?"

"Nothing," Dalton answers. "Just heard some things about him over the years."

Katniss looks around. "What kind of things?"

* * *

Katniss looks down at her phone in disbelief, eyes wide as she leans against a wall in the hotel.

 ** _Very bad things. Very, very bad things._**

Katniss' mouth falls open as she looks at pictures of him partying with various women, in an altercation with a photographer, and mugshots. "Oh, my God!"

 ** _It is important to know that, right now, Katniss is panicking._**

She runs through the halls trying to control her breathing.

* * *

"We're going to have to keep it! I don't want to, and you don't want to, but we're going to have to." Katniss says into her phone as she runs past the pool in a frenzy.

 _ **x**_

Gale, only half paying attention before, becomes fully alert when he hears these words. "Wait, wait. What's going on, Katniss?"

 _ **x**_

"I can't give Peeta the milkshake." Katniss tells him as she pauses to take deep breaths.

 _ **x**_

Gale sits up from his spot in front of a camera to go find her.

* * *

 ** _It is important to note that Gale Hawthorne Jr. is not a virgin._**

 _ **Well, it's important to him. I don't really care about it too much.**_

 _ **But, what is important to know is that Gale never planned to date a virgin.**_

 _ **But when he met Katniss, everything changed.**_

Katniss rushes to Gale as she sees him approaching their meeting point in front of the pier. Katniss hugged him as she tried to calm down. "Okay, okay. I thought about it. This doesn't mean that we have to keep it, right? There has got to be some legal loophole that we can find. We'll declare him unfit, we'll find other good parents—"

"Okay, calm down, slow down," Gale tells her.

"Did you see what I sent you?" Katniss bursts. "Did you click on the links?"

Gale rubs her arms in an effort to try and calm her down. "Yeah. I wish you would've warned me before the Bora Bora series."

"Gale, don't you think that I have a moral obligation to make sure that the milkshake goes to a decent person? And that is _not_ a decent person. What he did in Bora Bora was _not_ decent." Katniss pauses to take a breath. "It is literally _indecent_ which is why he got arrested."

"It was also a while ago," Gale tries to reason. "You said the guy had cancer, right? He obviously went through some major life-changing event. You know, he's happily married now. He wants a baby! Trust me, Bora Bora guy doesn't want a baby."

Katniss nods. "Yeah, I mean, that's definitely true."

"Look, I get why you're anxious, but, uh, you—you're gonna meet the wife, right?" he pauses to see her nod. "I bet you'll feel better when you do. Give this guy a real chance."

Katniss nods.

* * *

"So, I just stood there talking to her about money and lying about my marriage." Peeta tells Boggs.

His best friend nods. "Well, Glimmer's trying at least." He says looking down the balcony as she helps decorate. "Driving my staff crazy, wanting everything to be perfect for the party tonight."

"She's trying to impress my father." Peeta says.

Boggs looks at him, "Yeah, so you look good! It's his first time seeing the renovations. He's got to be blown away if he's gonna trust you to run things here. Glimmer knows how important this is to you."

"Yeah, maybe," Peeta says. "Or maybe she knows that if she gets my father on her side, it will be that much harder for me to leave her."

"Wow," says Boggs in thought. "So, you're pretty much done then, huh?"

"Yeah, I am." Is Peeta's only response before he notices something bizarre. "Why did she order an ice sculpture of a wizard?"

 _ **x**_

Glimmer looks up at the ice sculpture in horror as the curator beside her smiles in pride.

"I said _Marlin_ , not _Merlin_!"

The man's pride turns into confusion. "A Marlin? Like the fish?"

"Yes, like the fish!" Glimmer barks before sighing. "My father-in-law loves to fish."

After a small pause, the man turns to look at her with an inquisitive and jokingly hopeful face, "Does he also like magic?"

* * *

As the set of Hunter E's latest project is in a frenzy because of the loose leopard, Lily Everdeen marches up to the star. "We need to talk right now."

He nods before gesturing off the set.

Once in a quiet area, Lily begins her argument. "You can't keep calling me! I said I'd tell them when the time is right, and I'll tell them!"

"When? I want to be a part of my daughters' lives! You've kept them from me long enough." He argues.

A passionate fire ignites within her. "Yeah, well, you shouldn't have told me to have an abortion."

"Shh. I was angry and not in a right state of mind." Hunter retaliates.

"Yeah, yeah. I know, I know, and I was just a kid when I let my mother separate us." Says Lily on the brink of tears. "Now it's been so long, and I. . ."

Hunter becomes visibly uncomfortable. "Uh, I know it's hard Lily. And it was a mistake to have let that happen, but things are different now. I want my girls to have the pleasure of knowing me. I want to be a part of their life."

Lily brightens at the words. "Yeah, okay, I'll tell them. . . today."

"Good." Hunter nods. "What are they like?"

Lily gets a proud look in her eyes. "Katniss and Primrose? Oh, they're just awesome. Smart, strong, determined. . . one of them pregnant."

"I am going to be a grandfather?"

"Kind of," Lily tells him. "It was a medical mistake. Long story."

He leans in closer. "Who's the father?"

* * *

"But I honestly hoped this baby would be a real chance for us." Glimmer says. "Because you might have stopped loving me, but I never stopped loving you."

Boggs nods. "Okay. . . better. But I think you'd be more effective if you'd make yourself cry. Just, like, one tear."

"I haven't cried since I was a child, Boggs." Glimmer says with an eye roll before huffing. "God, I hate that I have to humiliate myself like this."

"I know, but this baby angle isn't gonna last." Boggs reminds her. "You're gonna have to make him love you again."

Glimmer looks over to him as he moves from his seat across from her to right beside her. "What if I cant?"

"Oh, please." Boggs says before proceeding to stroke her bare legs. "With your. . . _arsenal_. . . of weapons? Hmm? Come on! You only have to last one more year. Then, you'll cash out of your prenup, and we can get the hell out of here."

They then share a heated kiss as Gale takes pictures from his spot on duty. "Girl's in there again. Don't need to watch this part." He tells his partner, Leevy.

"What a waste of time. Nothing's happening." She complains.

Gale sighs as he resituates himself in his spot in front of the camera. "We've only been here 48 hours. Cortes named Boggs as a contact. If he's right, this is the first real lead we've had on El Gran Pinzon in four years."

"We haven't heard from El Gran Pinzon in four years because he's dead." She says crossing her arms.

Gale begins to get frustrated. "You know what would be great? If my partner wasn't always working against me."

"You don't go from the biggest drug game in town to radio silence, unless you're six feet under." She says matter-of-factly.

"Or regrouping," Gale interjects. "planning something big."

Just then, both of their phone's chime, and Leevy reads the message first with a relieved sigh. "Finally, an I.D. on the woman. I don't know what took all damn day."

"Glimmer Mellark." She reads from her screen as Gale listens intently. "Oh, wow. Apparently she's the wife of the guy who owns the hotel."

Gale looks up as he comes to an abrupt realization.

 _ **Try to remember later, that Gale's first thought in this moment was Katniss. He had to tell. . .**_

* * *

"Katniss!"

She looked up to find Peeta Mellark jogging up to her.

"Hey, I just wanted to apologize for what happened earlier," Peeta tells her. "The truth is, I have no idea how to act around you."

Katniss looks at him in amusement. "No, it's fine. So, I should get back to work. You know, try to get on with my life, not constantly think about it."

"Yeah, that makes sense." Peeta says.

Katniss nods as she sets silverware on tables.

"Just one more thing."

She turns around to face him. "What's that?"

"I would love to come to any doctor's appointments?" Peeta says nervously.

Images of Peeta's mugshots and nudes flash in her head as she looks at him with uncertainty.

 _ **It should be noted that at this very moment, all Katniss wanted to do was scream "No!"**_

 _ **But alas, Gale said to give him another try.**_

"I actually have a sonogram scheduled for this afternoon." Katniss says with uncertainty laced all throughout her cool voice. "Why don't you and your wife come?"

In his amazement, Peeta doesn't notice. "Really?"

"I mean, you definitely don't have to—" Katniss begins.

"Great." Peeta says.

It takes everything in her for Katniss to muster up the closest thing to a smile as she repeats his words to him, "Great."

* * *

Delly sits on her chair staring hard at a bottle of alcohol.

Her office door opens to reveal Finch with two cups of coffee in hand.

"What are you doing?"

Delly sighs. "Focusing on the bright side."

"Drinking will not solve anything."

Delly looks over to her step-mother. "I know, but every time I don't drink, I feel good about myself, and I need something to feel good about—because my brother won't speak to me, my wife cheated on me, and I have nowhere to go, and I'm about to be slapped with a huge lawsuit—but I'm not drinking! At least I'm not drinking."

Finch shakes her head before tucking a stray lock of Delly's hair behind her ear. "You're crazy, you know that?"

"Don't call me crazy." Delly tells her as she grabs her ex-lover's hand.

Finch closes her eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. . . I didn't mean—"

Delly then kisses her wrist, and begins to make a trail down her arm.

"Oh, we can't." Finch tells her.

Delly pulls Finch's hand around her own waist. "I know." They begin to share a passionate kiss before proceeding to undress and eventually give themselves to each other as they hadn't done in years.

* * *

Katniss runs as she catches and boards the bus. "I'm so sorry. I'm running late, are you there?"

 _ **x**_

Gale stares down a nine-month pregnant woman's belly as he responds into his phone. "Yup, I am here."

Katniss apologizes profusely on her end, but Gale pays no attention as he focuses on the giant belly in the lobby with him.

 _ **x**_

"Gale?" Katniss asks again as she tries to hold onto a railing.

 _ **x**_

Shaking his head to clear it, he responds to his fiancée. "Sorry. This place is. . . really weird. Um, are you close?"

 _ **x**_

Katniss tries to push past the numerous people aboard, "Yes. Listen, are, uh, Peeta and Glimmer there yet?"

 _ **x**_

Gale looks around. "No."

 _ **x**_

"Okay, good, good. 'Cause I wanted to tell you something before you meet him, which wasn't going to be today, but now it is, and it's so not a big deal, but you should know it before you meet him, or it might be a little strange when you do know."

 _ **x**_

Gale begins to worry. "Know what?"

 _ **x**_

She sighs on her end as she sits down on the bus. "I kissed Peeta once, five years ago."

 _ **x**_

"What?!"

 _ **x**_

"Yeah, way before I met you. And it was so not a big deal." She says quickly. "It was nothing really, you know? It meant nothing then, it means nothing now."

 _ **x**_

"You must be Gale," a voice says.

Gale jumps with a start as he opens his eyes to face a gorgeous man.

"Hi, I'm Peeta." the man says with a kind smile.

Gale speaks quietly into his phone, "We'll talk about this later, Katniss." He then stands to face the man with a plastered on smile.

"I used to make out with Katniss all the time."

Gale's eyes widen, "What?"

"I asked if they are running on time?" Peeta says.

Gale blinks, "Oh, yeah, I think so." He then holds out his hand. "Gale Hawthorne, Katniss' fiancé."

"Oh, I didn't know you two got engaged." Peeta says in surprise.

Gale's smile widens. "Yeah, yeah. It just happened. We're, like, super happy. We're really in love, big time." He laughs nervously. "Just trying to get through this crazy. . . accident."

"Yes. Us too." Glimmer chimes in as she takes her place beside Peeta.

Gale's smile fades as images of her making love to a man that is _not_ Peeta come to mind.

"Glimmer Mellark. Such a pleasure to meet you." She says before shaking his hand. "What your fiancée is doing for us—it's such a gift."

Sae's voice cuts in. "It's your fault we're late!"

"Shut it, grandma." Prim tells her. "We wouldn't be late if you hadn't made me change out of my booty shorts."

Gale smiles at the two women. "I didn't know you two were coming."

Prim turns to the stunning man beside Gale. "Are you. . ."

"The father, yes." Peeta finishes. "Hi, I'm Peeta."

Prim nods. "I'm Katniss' sister."

"I'm so sorry I'm late."

They all turn to find Katniss rushing in, and as they all turn, she analyzes the group.

"You must be Glimmer."

The young blonde smiles brightly. "Yes." She then walks up to the raven-haired girl with a forced laugh and brings her into a hug. "It is so nice to finally meet you. You're making our dreams come true."

"Katniss Everdeen?"

Katniss rushes over to the technician. "Hi."

"Hi! Come on in." the lady says before Katniss and the whole group enter the tiny room. As everyone tries to fit inside the room, the lady steps in. "You know what? I'm gonna have to ask some of you to leave."

An argument then begins to burst as everyone wants to stay in the room.

"Stop! Stop! Stop!" the lady yells. "Who are the parents?"

"I'm the father," Peeta informs.

Katniss joins, "I'm carrying the baby. So I should probably stay. . ."

"I'm supposed to be the mother, technically," Glimmer says.

Gale steps up, "I'm the fiancé."

"You know what? I'm gonna go on biology." The woman says. "Everyone else, out."

They all begin to exit as the lady ushers them out, leaving Katniss and Peeta in an uncomfortable silence.

. . .

"This is gonna be cold, okay?"

Katniss nods.

"You're about seven weeks along, is that right?"

Katniss nods again.

"Okay, I'm gonna get started." She says before putting the wand on her stomach. "Will you be wanting pictures?"

"No."

"Yes."

Katniss and Peeta look at each other for a second before he looks away. The woman looks on with pursed lips.

Peeta tries to start some small talk, but Katniss can't help herself from bringing up what she'd learned. "I Googled you."

"That couldn't have gone well."

Katniss shakes her head. "No, it didn't."

"I was pretty lost a year and a half ago." Peeta confides. "And when I got sick, I just went to this really. . . dark place, you know?"

Katniss gulps, her iron mask not giving away any of her thoughts. "So, what changed?"

"My sister, actually." He says. "She came over one day and told me to stop feeling sorry for myself and that I had to find the bright side. It's what I needed to hear, I guess. So, I started to focus on the things that I should change, which ended up being pretty much my entire life."

She gives him a look. "What do you think made you so lost to begin with?"

"The fear of failure." He responds immediately. "That's what it is. . . it's fear of failure. Which can be a pretty crippling thing."

She finally looks away. "Yeah. I know."

"Is that why you're trying to be a teacher and not a writer?"

Something sparks deep within her, and she looks up at him incredulously. But all she sees is a knowing look in his eyes, and she remembers the moment they shared so long ago.

"So what have you been writing?" He asks kindly.

She forces a smile at that. "I'm not writing anything right now."

"What do you want to be writing?"

She looks around nervously before finally spitting it out, "Romance."

He looks at her in surprise. "Romance?"

A persistent thumping sounds about the room. "It's a little early to hear the heartbeat."

Katniss and Peeta look at the monitor in amazement as she begins to tear up.

 _ **It was all a little early indeed.**_

 _ **And now, I implore you to remember that Gale's first thought upon learning about Glimmer's affair was Katniss, he had to tell Katniss.**_

"End the affair." Gale tells Glimmer as they stand side-by-side staring into the room.

She doesn't miss a beat. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I'll be more clear then," Gale responds. "Stop sleeping with Boggs."

Glimmer looks over at him, her eyes wide in fear. "How. . ."

"Came by the hotel and saw you together." He lies.

She looks around in an effort to calm herself. "Where?"

"Doesn't matter." Gale responds. "Do you even want this baby?"

She blinks, "Yes, of course I want this baby, I'm. . ."

"Then end it. Or I'll tell your husband." He threatens calmly. "And, trust me, Katniss is not giving the baby to him alone."

Glimmer looks at him, realization dawning on her. "And you don't want it."

Gale only looks away.

"Fine. I'll end it," she agrees. "Who knows? Maybe I'll ask you for a favor at some point."

* * *

Katniss stares outside of Gale's car window as they sit in silence. "I talked to Peeta. Everything's gonna be fine."

"Good. That's good." He says before dropping a bomb. "I want you to quit your job."

She looks over at him, "What?"

"I—it's, it's too much." Gale tells her. "You're carrying the guy's baby. You just told me you kissed him."

She sighs. "Five years ago. It was nothing. Come on, honey. I've been there for four years. I really like it, I have all my friends there. It pays well, I have health care. Gale—"

"Babe. . ."

She continues, "I don't want to start over, you _know_ how much I don't want to start over."

"I can't help it—it makes me uncomfortable. There are a million other hotels in South Beach." He looks at her. "Just find another one."

She nods solemnly.

* * *

At the sound of knocking, Lily looks over at the front door. "Katniss? Prim?" Upon finding Hunter, she gasps. "What are you doing here? Didn't you get my text?"

"Oh, no, no. I didn't." He tells her. "I have too many phones. If it's important, the best way to reach me is through Twitter."

She looks around worriedly. "Actually, today isn't a good day anymore. Katniss had her sonogram today, that's what I was texting you about. Oh shoot, she's coming!"

"Katniss? Now? How's my hair?"

Lily rolls her eyes and pulls him into the house. "Come on, get in here quick." She drags him into her room and locks them inside.

"What kind of mother are you to keep a father from his daughter?"

Lily looks up in anger. "She's going through a hard time, she had her f—"

"And I have been patient long enough." Hunter says impatiently. "Tell her now, or I will."

Lily stops him. "Okay—just stay here."

She finds Katniss on their porch screen typing away on her laptop.

"Katniss. . . I wanted to talk with you."

Her daughter continues typing. "Oh, hang on, I'm just gonna finish filling something out."

Her mother takes a seat beside her and looks at the screen in surprise. "A job application? You like your job."

"Yeah, Gale wants me to quit." Katniss sighs. "He's uncomfortable with Peeta. . . which I get. Plus, the whole sonogram was kind of hard for him, so. . ."

Her mother raises an eyebrow. "And how about you?"

Katniss begins to burst into tears. "We—we heard the heartbeat, mom. And I just started to think about it. I just didn't want this to take over my life and change everything. But it's going to. 'Cause it's not a stupid milkshake, it's a _baby_ , and I'm gonna get attached to it. I mean, how can I not? And then I have to give it to them. And that's what I want to do. I do, but it's gonna be so hard. I mean, it just is. Even if Peeta and Glimmer are great. And I don't know how to prepare, or how to act, or what to do to not make it hurt."

"Katniss, I don't think there's anything you can do." Her mother says before pulling her into a tight hug.

"See this? This right here is why I keep saying to sue. Because you're gonna have a lot of pain. All because of this idiotic doctor. And your life is now hard and complicated in ways it shouldn't be."

Katniss sniffs, "Mom, don't cry."

"I'm not." She says, her voice wavering. "I mean, me, I'm a screw-up. I mean, I deserved to get knocked up, but you? This isn't fair."

Katniss shakes her head. "Stop. I can't go to that "it's not fair" place."

"I'm just saying," her mother continues. "You get to be selfish now. You don't have to take care of anyone else, just you. Okay?"

Her daughter nods. "Yeah, thanks. . . You know you're not a screw-up, mom. You're so brave, and I could use some of that right now."

They both begin to wipe away their tears at the sound of approaching footsteps from inside.

"What are you two talking about?" Sae asks.

Katniss continues wiping away at her face. "I guess it's just hitting me that I'm having a baby. And how much it totally sucks."

"Does this mean that we can stop calling it a _milkshake_?"

Her mother laughs quietly. "Where does that expression come from, anyway?"

"It was when you did that crazy singing at her quinceañera!"

Katniss turns to her mother quickly. "Mom. I'm sorry, okay? Don't be upset about that."

But Lily was not upset at all.

Because she remembered the events quite differently.

 **FLASHBACK**

 _Lily turned to see Katniss' Superfly Date kissing his superslutty hookup. She then turned to see Katniss searching for him._

 _Out of other ideas for a diversion, Lily went up to the DJ and began singing the Missy Elliot song._

 **FLASHBACK END**

And the memory that she was a good mom, that she knew when to protect her daughter's feelings, fortified Lily.

* * *

She marched into her room.

"I want to see her right now."

She stepped up. "No, you won't, because being a parent means that you put your kid's interests first, and right now, Katniss is overwhelmed, and she needs some part of her life to not change, and so you're going to back off until I tell you she's ready. And don't you ever question me as a mother again, got it?"

"Okay." He says in disbelief. "I will wait. . . but not forever, right?"

She sighs as the adrenaline runs out of her system. "No. Not forever."

* * *

Katniss calls Gale's phone as she rides the bus late at night, but he doesn't hear it due to the turned off volume as he's on duty.

"Gale, it's me. I thought I could treat this pregnancy like it was nothing, like an inconvenience. But I can't, and I can't pretend that nothing's changed because everything's changed. Everything's different now. I'm gonna be different. After going through this, after carrying a baby and having to give it up." She says into her phone, voice breaking. "So, I need some constants in my life right now, I really do. Which is why I'm gonna keep my job. And I love you, Gale, and I don't want to hurt you, but I get to be selfish right now. Not you." With that, she ends the recording with a sigh.

* * *

"I love you, and you love me." Boggs tells Glimmer.

She walks away with a shake of her head, "It's over, Carter." He grabs tightly onto her wrist. "Let go of me."

Gale watches intently into his binoculars as Boggs pins her down to a chair by her neck and tells her something.

"Good. You passed the test," she says breathing heavily. "I wanted to make sure you'd fight for me."

"Damn right I'd fight for you." He says before they begin to share a hot kiss.

Gale looks on, confused. "Wha?"

"Mmm, the party." Glimmer reminds him before he gets too worked up. "I have to get ready. We'll sneak away later?"

He stands up and offers her a hand. "I'll see you later."

They kiss once more before she exits the room and stops in the hallway to rub her neck.

 ** _But there would be no later._**

 ** _Not for them._**

* * *

Party music blares as Katniss walks around offering people drinks.

"Your father is going to love the renovations." Glimmer tells Peeta as they stand over the balcony. "He'll be so impressed with what you've done."

Peeta shows no interest though, and reaches to search through his phone.

"They got the Marlin right, finally." She continues. "Can you imagine if he showed up to an ice sculpture of a wizard?"

As she forces out a laugh, and still sees no response, Glimmer begins to get fed up.

"You know what? I am so sick of this. Maybe you're right. Maybe this can't be salvaged." She says." But I can't take this. You standing there, all sanctimonious. Yes, I did something terrible. But you know what? You did something terrible, too!"

He looks over at her in exhaustion, "And what did I do? Tell me, what did I do?"

"You stopped loving me." She says after walking away from him. "I remember the day, actually. I'm sure it started happening earlier. I'm sure I just registered it on this day, but. . . you were halfway though your chemo. And it seemed like you had a nice enough visit from your sister, but after she left, you came out, and you were looking around and. . . and when you looked at me. . . it felt as if everything had changed. But I honestly hoped that this baby would be a real chance for us. . . . Because you might've stopped loving me, but I _never_ stopped loving you."

 _ **Turns out, it's easy to give a good performance. . . when what you are saying is actually true.**_

* * *

Katniss is fixing her shoe in the locker room as she hears music begin to play, and looks up to find Gale. "Can I come in?"

"What's with the music?"

He steps in. "Well, I wanted to do something for you. Like some big movie gesture. Fill the whole room with flowers or leopards or something like that. But there are budget restrictions, so. . ."

Katniss looks down with pursed lips.

He comes closer to her. "When the guy come to the girl to say he screwed up, there's always this dramatic I-screwed-up music. So this is my dramatic I-screwed-up music." He steps in front of her. "I listened to your message. And you're right. I made this about me and not you. Of course you should keep your job. You should do whatever you need to do. I'm really sorry."

She goes to kiss him, but he stops her. "Wait. That. . . that thing you said about everything changing? That's not fair. How much I love you? That's not changing."

"You got some good music to kiss to in there?" She asks jokingly.

He begins to play "Let It Go" by James Bay. "Oh, yeah. I got the best music to kiss to."

He then holds her against the lockers and begins to give her a long, sweet kiss.

* * *

Glimmer sits alone with a drink in hand.

Peeta walks in and hands her an envelope. "I wanted to give you this."

She picks it up, "Divorce papers I assume."

"It's the sonogram of the baby."

She looks up at him in surprise.

"Look, we've both made mistakes. And I don't know if we'll get past them." He stops to grab one of her hands in his. "Let's give it a try."

Glimmer stands up and gives him a kiss.

* * *

Gale pulls back slightly. "Well, you can't blame me for being a little jealous though, right? I mean, that guy's like. . . Well, let's put it this way, your sister was drooling all over him."

"First of all, my sister drools over everybody. And second? So not my type."

He interjects quickly. "Way too pretty, right? I mean. . . just super pretty."

Katniss laughs and agrees. "Hey, trust me. You have nothing to be jealous of."

* * *

"Just be happy for me." Glimmer says as she looks at herself in the mirror. "I love him mother. I actually think we can fix this."

Her mother clicks her tongue. "But what about the other man you whored yourself out to? You are a selfish girl. After I sacrificed everything for you?"

"Stop, mother." Glimmer says. "I'll figure it out. Now get out please."

* * *

Katniss walks onto the balcony to find Peeta looking over the party. "Shouldn't you be in there?"

"Yeah, just kind of taking a moment, pre-game." He says.

She nods before taking a place beside him. "Understood."

He gives her a smile in return.

"So, you should know. . . I'm gonna sue your sister." Katniss announces. "I went back and forth, but she screwed up. And she needs to permanently lose her license and admit her wrongdoings and—"

He stops her rambling, "You should sue. And don't worry, it's got nothing to do with me."

 _ **Except that his hotel was on the line.**_

"I'm glad you understand." She says to him. "I also. . . I wanted to thank you. What you said before about not avoiding something due to fear. . . I needed to hear it."

He looks at her a moment. "Are you gonna start writing?"

"Hey, if that's what I want to do, I gotta go for it, right?" She says. "Like you, like my sister. . . I should probably get to work."

He nods. "Yeah. I'll. . . I'll walk with you."

Gale puts down his binoculars as he sees them walking together.

Upon arriving back, they see Delly looking lost and wandering about.

"I'm so sorry. I'll tell her to leave right now." Peeta says before racing off. "What are you doing here?"

Before she can speak, a deep voice steps in. "I invited her."

"Dad," He watches as his father approaches him. "I don't know if you know what's been going on here—"

"Of course I know. Your sister made a very unfortunate mistake." He looks over at Delly. "But she wasn't drinking and that's what's important."

"An " _unfortunate mistake_ "?" Peeta asks incredulously. "Dad, I don't understand why you coddle her—"

"That's not true. You do understand." Mr. Mellark stops him once again. "Delly is family and family is everything. And speaking of. . ."

Finch approaches them with a grand smile. "Hello, darling." She shares a kiss with her husband before greeting her step-children.

* * *

As Sae runs to tell Lily the ending of the latest telenovela episode, she runs into her daughter's room to find her in bed with the star of the show in question.

* * *

"You could actually get really rich for doing this. You do realize that." Katniss' co-worker informs her.

Katniss shakes her head. "I'm not doing the to get rich. I mean, I can handle rich. Rich wouldn't be the worst thing in the world."

"Okay, in the meantime we've got some ideas." Johanna tells her. "Changes we'd like to see at the hotel. Since it seems like you kind of have pull."

Katniss nods. "Let me hear them. I'm all about embracing change."

The lights then go out and everyone begins complaining. A thud and another indescribable sound are then heard before the lights turn back on.

Katniss gasps in horror as Boggs lay impaled on the Marlin.

 _ **On the bright side, Katniss' quinceañera was no longer the worst party she'd ever been to.**_

* * *

 _Whew! That was massive! Anyway, so sorry for not updating last week! My choir teacher asked me if I'd perform in the talent show with her, so I agreed and had to learn a song last minute and then a ton of other things went on in school so I had to focus on those. But things have cooled down some, and our audition was successful and I have five shows to perform for my school's talent show on Thursday! I'm super excited and nervous at the same time, but I had a solo Friday at a small concert and that went pretty well, so I'm confident that the talent show will be great!_

 _Now for the end of my rambling, I hope you guys liked this chapter, and hopefully there'll be an update next week! Be sure to check out my other work in the meantime!_

 _With love, Daisy_

 **Posted** : _March 20th, 2016_


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